What Should I Do If My 6-Year-Old Sleeps Too Much?
April 11, 2023
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Should I be concerned about my child sleeping too much? How much sleep is too much sleep? What can I do to build healthy routines in my home?
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Sleep habits can vary at any age. In most cases, younger kids can have difficulty getting up in the morning, especially on school days. However, if you identify a consistent habit of your child’s unwillingness to get out of bed, there might be more going on under the surface.
Here are a few things to keep in mind or try in situations where your child seems to sleep too much:
Pay attention to what your child eats or drinks before bed. There could be positive or negative effects based on these sorts of habits.
Experiment with giving unexpected surprises of something he or she really likes. For example, make their favorite breakfast or give a small gift to see if they get out of bed quicker. This could reveal and resolve simple laziness.
If your child has older siblings that tend to sleep in or stay up late, he or she could be mirroring their behavior. Try to focus on family-wide sleeping habits if this is the case.
Also, keep a close eye on the use of technology, video games, or screen time late at night. Overuse could lead to unhealthy patterns of technology use that impacts sleep.
If your child’s fatigue and oversleeping continue to be a problem, you might have to dig a bit deeper to find out what’s going on. For more insight on this topic, explore our sleep resources here.
Dr. Huerta oversees Focus’ initiatives that equip mothers and fathers with biblical and research based principles and guidance for raising healthy, resilient children rooted in a thriving faith in Christ.
Dr. Huerta is a bilingual psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, author of 7 Traits of Effective Parenting, and co-author of Focus on the Family’s Age and Stage resource, and various other resources. He is also the co-host and expert on the Focus on Parenting and the Practice Makes Parent podcasts.
For many years, he has provided families with practical, biblically-based, and research-based parenting advice on key parenting topics. He has been interviewed by various media outlets including Fox News, Fatherly, Christianity Today, WORLD Magazine, The Christian Post and CBN, and regularly speaks on Christian radio stations and podcasts across the United States. He’s also written for various publications and is a regular speaker at retreats, conventions, family camps, online events worldwide, and on various social media channels.
Dr. Huerta has maintained a private practice serving families in Colorado Springs since 2003 and has also served families as an employee of Focus on the Family since 2004.
He and his wife, Heather, love the outdoors, have been married since 1997, and love spending time with their two adult children.
Creating expectations of how life should go can open our hearts up to disappointment. However, if we live with anticipation and expectancy of what is to come, and what God is doing in our lives, we can experience greater joy in the journey.